Magnetic sheet conveyer



Feb. 1, 1944. H. B. CUMMINGS ET AL MAGNETIC SHEET CONVEYER 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Original Filed June 4. 1937 Feb- 1, 1 4 H. B. CUMMINGS ET AL 2,340,797

MAGNETIC SHEET CONVEYER Original Filed June 4, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Feb. 1, 1944. H. B. CUMMINGS ET AL MAGNETIC SHEET CONVEYER Original Filed June 4, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENT OBS W A. M

rlilllll I'll! NW mw Feb. 1, 1944.

H. B. CUMMINGS ET AL v MAGNETIC SHEET CONVEYER 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Original Filed June 4, 1937- Patented Feb- 1,

MAGNETIC SHEET CONVEYER Howard B. Cummings and George R. Carroll, Aliquippa, Pa., assignors to Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation, a corporation of Pennsyl- Vania Original application June 4, 1937, Serial No. 146,341. Divided and this application August 29, 1942, Serial No. 456,636

2 Claims.

Our present invention relates to the handling of ferrous metal strip and sheets and more particularly to a method and apparatus for classifying or sorting ferrous metal sheets as they are sheared from strip in accordance with their strip gauge characteristics. This application is a division of our co-pending application Serial No. 146,341, filed June 4, 1937, and issued December 1, 1942, as Patent No. 2,303,526.

As set forth in Patent No. 2,146,581 to George A. Kaufman, the classifying or sorting of metal sheets has been a dificult problem to solve satisfactorily. It has been customary in the past to classify these sheets after they are sheared from a strip or other piece of material. As a result, the most common method of classification, i. e., in accordance with gauge or weight, has been a manual procedure which is relatively slow, expensive and inaccurate. For a long time the industry has been seeking to mechanize this work or to reduce the amount of manual labor required, thus releasing these men for more important work. Insofar as already sheared sheets are concerned, certain proposals have in the past been made to classify such by methods involving suction cups for picking up the individual sheets,

or in other similar ways mentioned in the application already referred to. Practically no effort has been made, aside from the apparatus and procedure set forth in said Kaufman application, to determine the gauge or weight characteristics of the material while still in the form of strip and then subsequently to shear the strip into sheets and to classify the sheets in accordance with their strip gauge characteristics. A rapid, accurate method and apparatus for the classification of ferrous sheets in such manner as to minimize or eliminate manual operations is very much desired in this field, particularly one which will handle sheets at the exceptionally rapid rate of 600-700 per minute, depending on their length, without marring or damaging the sheets in any way. Insofar as we know, there has been no satisfactory method or apparatus proposed to take care of this situation.

It is, accordingly, one of the objects of our present invention to classify ferrous metal sheets as they are sheared from strip and in accordance with their characteristics as determined while still in the form of strip in a rapid and economical manner without damaging the sheets in any way and in general our invention may be considered as an improvement upon the invention of said Kaufman application.

It is another object of our invention to provide a system of classification for ferrous metal sheets so that such sheets as have desired or permissible characteristics can be magnetically separated from the remainder of the sheets which are defective or deficient in any respect.

Another object of our invention resides in a system of conveyers which is so constructed and arranged that as a stream of just sheared sheets passes into the conveyer system certain sheets can be diverted from the stream of sheets in accordance with certain characteristics thereof as determined while still in the form of strip.

A further object of our invention resides in feeding a strip of metal past a station where the characteristics thereof are determined, in shearing the strip into sheets, in receiving the sheets on a conveyer system which has at least two possible paths of travel for such sheets and in magnetically diverting certain of said sheets from such stream of sheets, thus discharging the sheets at separate points as separate groups, piles or stacks.

A further object of our invention resides in the provision of a magnetic conveyor which is capable of picking up predetermined sheets from a stream of sheets to deliver the same to a separate point of discharge as well as in the correlation thereof with the gauge or other means for determining the characteristics of the strip from which the sheets are formed by shearing prior to the shearing operation.

A still further object of our invention lies in magnetically segregating ferrous metal sheets, conveying them while magnetically holding them and causing them to be deposited at a predetermined point or in accordance with a predetermined sorting or classifying scheme.

Still further objects reside in such various details, combinations and sub-combinations of structural and procedural features as are hereinafter set forth.

Other and further objects and advantages will either be understood by those skilled in this art or will be apparent or pointed out hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of part of an apparatus embodying the present-invention which will secure the objects and advantages hereinabove set forth;

Fig. 2 is a continuation of Fig. 1 and illustrates the rear or feed end of the apparatus;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a portion of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

Fig. 4 is a schematic or diagrammatic illustration of the presentapparatus and procedure I VII-VII of Fig. 5; and

Fig. 8 represents a schematic wiring diagram of the electrical and magnetic control system.

Similar numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the various views of the drawings.

Referring first to our invention in a general manner, we point out that it involves the determination of the gauge or other desired characteristic of the metal while it is still in the form of a strip. A strip of materialsuch as a coil of tin plate is fed in the usual way to a flying shear through suitable feed rollers and at a suitable point prior to shearing the strip into sheets the characteristics of the strip are determined. Insofar as the actual gauge or thickness of the material is involved, this can be continuously measured or indicated by the use of any suitable gauging device such as a Pratt and Whitney "electrolimit gauge as disclosed in the aforementioned Kaufman application, the construction, opera-- tion and electrical circuits of which are hereby made a part of this disclosure. Insofar as surface or other defects in the strip are concerned these are observed by an operator or inspector stationed at or near the gauge. In some cases, the strip has wavy edges or other defects which are not accurately gaugeable and the operator or' inspector also notes (and usually marks) such. The strip may be stopped for marking purposes, if desired. As the strip passes through the gauge, the off-gauge characteristics. beyond tolerance limits, are impressed on electrical circuits precisely as set forth in the Kaufman application conveyer, so that off-gauge" sheets are not attracted by the magnetic conveyer and hence follow a different path of travel through the classifler than 0. K. sheets. In other words, our invention involves magnetically attracting "O. K." sheets while preventing off-gauge sheets from being magnetically attracted and thence causing mentioned. The strip is next sheared into sheets by'means of the flying shear and the'sheets are then received on a belt or conveyer which transfers them to the classifier. For the purposes of the present invention, the sheets are segregated into two groups, one of which will be hereinafter termed O. K. sheets and the other of which will be termed "off-gauge sheets, with the understanding that the term off-gauge not only includes gauge characteristics beyond the tolerance limits of the particular classification of O. K. sheets being made but also other defects such as those noted above. The sheets are then predeterminedly and magnetically sorted or classified in accordance with strip gauge characteristics as determined by the gauge under the actuation and control set up by the gauge. That is to say, offgauge strip sets up a delayed magnetic action such that when such strip, in the form of sheets, reaches the classifier a timed action occurs to prevent such sheets from following the normal or O. K. path of travel through the classifier. The same is true of strip noted or marked as offgauge by the operator or inspector, there being a manual electrical parallel control actuatable by him for causing such material also to follow the off-gauge path of travel. Thus this control which is in addition to and in parallel with the gauge control is a manual control and consists primarily in shutting off the power or magnetizing force (as by pushing a button or switch) which is imparted to one of the conveyers of the classifier or a part thereof, hereinafter called the magnetic numeral l1.

each group to follow a different path of travel and to be discharged at a separate point. At each point of discharge a suitable piler is provided which produces a uniform stack of sheets at that point; however, the piler for the 0. K." sheets may be so constructed as to effect stagger piling in accordance with the aforesaid Kaufman application. Such stagger piling is deemed to be a feature of the present invention and stagger piling as per said Kaufman application is hereby made a part of this disclosure.

Referring now to the drawings, a suitable framework is provided designated as a whole by the numeral ID. This framework is made up of vertically spaced beams or supports H and horizontal beams I 2 which are suitably bolted or otherwise secured together, as shown at the angle bars l3. Any necessary braces, etc., ll may be provided for the usual purposes. classification and piling takes place within the framework ID; the motive power and driving mechanism are disposed on the top of the framework for which purpose a suitable platform or support I5 is erected. It is believed that it will be most convenient to describe the apparatus beginning from the right-hand part of Fig. 2 and proceeding to the left-hand portion of Fig. 1 since this follows the course of the materiald during operation of the classifier and in describing the apparatus in this way, we will at the same time follow the schematic illustration shown in Fig. 4.

The strip of tin plate or other ferrous metal or alloy is fed from a coil over suitable tables and emerges through feed rolls l6. From feed rolls IS the strip passes through a gauging mechanism, such as the electro-limit gauge already referred to, which is designated diagrammatically by the As the strip passes through the gauge l1 off-gauge characteristics, beyond tolerance limits, are impressed upon the gauge circuits and effect the control hereinafter'explained. The operator or inspector also utilizes his parallel manual control as to strip portions having ungaugeable or surface or other defects which will not cause the effecting of automatic control by the gauge. From gauge ll the strip is fed by pinch rolls Ila to the shears indicated at l8 and is there cut transversely into sheets of the desired length. The construction and operation of flying shears is well known in this art and per se forms no part of the present invention. We, however, point out that the speed or frequency of the shears is particularly related to the speed of the strip in accordance with known practice so as not only to produce sheared sheets of the desired length but to produce such sheets of equal lengths. In practice, the length of the sheet is de-Termined by appropriately adjusting the speed or frequency of the shears and the strip is thus sheared while it is still moving at a considerable rate of speed since the operation of a flying shear does not necessitate the stopping of the strip for shearing purposes. Consequently, the sheets are discharged from the shear with an appreciable linear velocity and hence they pass onto the first conveyer l9, two such sheets being indicated by the numeral 20.

This conveyer I9 is operated at'any suitable In general the speed up to approximately 700 feet per minute and as will be apparent from Figs. 2 and 4 the sheared sheets are thus conveyed along conveyer 19 until they come within the influence of th magnetic conveyer indicated as a whole by the numeral 2| operating at the same speed. The details of the magnetic conveyer are shown in Figs. 5 to '7, inclusive, and will be hereinafter referred to. When the sheets reach a point adjacent the end of conveyer Is, it will be apparent that there are two possible paths of travel thereafter. If the adjacent portion of the magnetic conveyer 2| is energized then the sheets will be magnetically picked up from conveyer l9 and conveyed along the underside of the magnetic conveyer (as sheet 22) until they reach a point near the upper (higher) end thereof. When these magnetically attracted sheets tend to project from the end of the magnetic conveyer, the magnetic field gradually becomes insufficient to hold the sheets due to the loss of contact of the conveyer with the sheets and the passage of the sheets beyond the full force of the magnetic field: eventually the sheets fall therefrom, as is indicated by the sheet 23 in Figure 4. As sheets reach such position and fall from the magnetic conveyer, they are received by the conveyer 24 which conveys them (at 70-350 linear feet per minute) (as sheet 25) to a stack or pile designated by the numeral 26 (see Fig. 4). Sheets which ar permitted or caused to follow the just mentioned path of travel are the O. K. sheets; the sheets which are 'of proper gauge within desired tolerance limits and which have no observable surface or other defects which would cause them to be rejected or diverted by the gauging device or by the operator or inspector.

When sheets which are off-gauge, as already defined, reach a position, as above explained, where they would normally be attracted magnetically by the magnetic conveyer 2|, the timed operation of the gauge circuits prevents such action taking placeby de-energizing certain (the lower) coils of the magnetic conveyer thus reducing the -field or flux to a value insufficient to cause attraction. By referring to Fig. 4 it will be observed that the magnetic conveyer 2| is electrically or magnetically divided into two sets of coils A and B. It is the A coils which are deenergized to prevent the attraction of off-gauge sheets, this being more fully explained in connection with the description of Fig. 8. In such case, the sheets then fall off conveyer l9, as illustrated by the sheet 21 in Fig. 4, and are received by the conveyer 28 therebelow (operating at 70-350 linear feet per minute) and thus are conveyed (as sheet 29) to another or separate pile 30 (see Fig. 4). As already explained, piling in either instance may be either such that the sheets are uniformly piled in vertical alignment or are laterally stagger-piled. In this way, sheets are classified either as O. K., or off-gauge sheets as they are sheared from strip but in accordance with their characteristics as determined while.

st ll in the form of strip. Thus no gauging or other operations need be carried out upon the sheared sheets themselves which represents a marked advantage in this field as there is no liability of damaging the sheets. Likewise, the sheets can be classified at an exceptionally rapid rate limited only by the speed of the shear. We have, for example, classified sheets in accordance with our present invention with practically 100% (at least 98-99%) accuracy at a rate as rapid as 600-700 sheets per minute, depending on their length. Material exhibiting surface defects is caused to travel to the off-gauge pile as already indicated.

While the motive and driving means illustrated in Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawings need only be such as will enable us to carry out the objects hereinbefore stated, and while the particular details which have been illustrated inthis connection are. not presented as a limitation upon the present invention, nevertheless for a. better understanding of the apparatus and procedure here involved we describe the same with the understanding that the details thereof are subject to change or variation as dictated by good engineering judgment or development. The motive and driving means are suitably mounted atop the framework Hi. ,The numeral designates a H. P.) motorprovided with a'brake and designed to rotate at 69 R. P. M. This motor 35 has a shaft 36 provided with suitable couplings 31. The shaft 35 is also provided with wormgear 38 meshing with gear '39, the two gears having a reduction ratio of 30:1. The gear 39 is secured on transverse shaft 40 mounted for rotation in bearings 4| suitably mounted upon the framework l0. This shaft is provided at its ends with v the sprockets 42. Beyond the couplings 31 is another set of reducing gears and another transverse shaft the same as those already described and hence supplied with the same numerals; To the sprockets on each of these transverse shafts 40 is adapted to be connected the flexible chains reducer and the bearing a number of sprockets or pulleys is provided to which are connected the belts or drives SI, 52; 53 for driving the tric motor of 85 R. P. M. provided with a brake I and which has substantially the same relationship with the transverse shafts 55 as motor" has with the previously referred to transverse shafts 40. Motor 54 has a shaft 56 having couplings 51 therein, the shaft being provided with gears 58 meshing with worm gears 59 on transverse shafts 55 which rotate in bearings 50 mounted on the framework I0 and which are provided with sprockets 6| at their ends for receiving chains 62, which in turn serve to raise and lower the 0. K4 pilermechanism as will be hereinafter more fully set forth. As will be understood from Figure 1 especially, the flexible chains 43 are connected at their lower ends to a framework 62 which serves as a support for the off-gauge piler designated as a whole by the numeral 63. This framework 62 can thus be raised or lowered as required and such action is accomplished through the rotation of the sprockets 42 on transverse shafts 40, the rotation being obtained through operation of the reducing gears actuated by the motor 35. This raising and lowering of the framework makes it possible recelved sheets in order to produce the desired results such as to insure a maximum number of sheets on a pile or a predetermined number.. The sheets are subsequently removed in any suitable manner and disposed of in accordance with their characteristics. Resting upon said beam or framework are guides which serve to form a properly aligned stack of sheets. These guides may consist of side guides 84 and end guide 85.

In similar manner the lower ends of flexible chains 82 are connected to the framework 88 which forms a support for the O. K. piler mechanism designated as a whole by the numeral 81. Both chains 48 and chains 82 are connected to their respective frameworks by any suitable means such as the bolt assemblies indicated by the numeral 88, and, like chains 48, chains 82 are actuated through the sprockets 6| of transverse shafts 88, the source of power being motor 84 and thus enabling the O. K. piler to be raised or lowered as required.

Between the end of conveyer 28 and this piler 88, a pair of pinch rolls is located, indicated at 88, and these rolls may be adjusted toward and from each other by the take-up or adjusting mechanism indicated at 18 which substantially comprises a block ll within which the lower pinch roll may be adjusted upwardly or downwardly and the position of which is varied or adjusted" by means of take-up screw 12 acting through spring 18. A yoke 18 is provided at this point in the usual manner.

As will be apparent from Figs. 1 and 3, the

conveyer 28 is driven through a gear or pulley l5 actuated by the belt 82 (Fig. l), the other end of which passes around a; pulley provided on shaft 48 (Fig. 3), already described. The magnetic conveyer 2| is driven by belt 5i which passes around a pulley on said shaft 48. Likewise, conveyer 24 is driven similarly to conveyer 28, through pulley liand belt' 58 which passes around a pulley on said shaft I8. In this manner, only one source of power is used to drive all three of the conveyers which carry out the classiflcation and by proper selection of pulley sizes the desired relationship between the speeds of these conveyers is readily achieved. This also prevents piling up of sheets on any of the conveyers and prevents jamming at the pinch rolls where the sheets-are fed from the conveyers to the pilers in which connection the piler 81 which receives the O. K. sheets may be constructed substantially like that of the piler 88 already described for off-gauge sheets. In'the piler for "O. K. sheets, however, we have more or less diagrammatically illustrated a stagger piler which is constructed in accordance with that illustrated and described in the aforementioned Kaufman application Serial No. 752,792. The plate 11 thereat serves as a forward stop for the sheets and insures that the forward edges of the sheets forming the stack or pile shall be vertically aligned. The shaft 18 there shown, which is rotatable through a limited arc, is connected with a core (not visible) within mentioned for the sake of completeness but are shoes 88 alternate with the shoes 8|.

ing transversely of the magnetic conveyer and not per se a part of the present invention. For a full description and illustration thereof, we refer to the said Kaufman application. Likewise, a set of pinch rolls 8! is provided between the end of conveyer 24 and the piler 81 and one Of the pinch rolls, in this case the upper one, is adapted to be adjusted for the usual purposes as explained anent pinch rolls 88. The upper pinch roll is movable in block 82, adjustment being effected by turning bolt 88 which varies the tension of spring 84, the whole being supported by yoke 85. Pinch rails 88 and 8! not only function as feed rolls for the pilers 88 and 81 but the construction of such causes the sheets to be discharged to the pilers in slightly bowed condition.- This condition has been found to be highly advantageous for reasons which will be understood by reference to the above-identified Kaufman application.

Referring now to the details of construction of the magnetic conveyer 2| illustrated in Figs. 5 to '7, inclusive, end brackets 88 are mounted on the main framework It in any suitable manner to maintain the illustrated positioning thereof. These end brackets are mechanically connected by the longitudinal metal shoes 88 which are suitably secured at their ends to said brackets by rivets, belts or the like 81. Extending away from each end bracket is a pair of bearing upports 88 in which rolls 88 are suitably Journaled. These rolls carry the conveying belt 88 which is made of rubber, but which may be made of any suitable flexible material. One of these rolls such as that at the left of Fig. 5 is suitably driven as by belt 8i herein referred to in connection with the general description of the apparatus. It will be noted that the longitudinal metal shoes 88 are in parallel spaced relationship and that additional longitudinal shoes 8! are also disposed in parallel spaced relationship so that the Extendhence at right angles to the shoes just referred to are a plurality of parallel spaced metal tie bars 82. These tie bars are also vertically spaced with respect to the longitudinal shoes 88 and 8|, the relationship being-clear from Fig. 7 particularly. It will be further noted that both the spaced longitudinal steel sho s and the transverse tie bars are provided with apertures which register when these elements are assembled as shown. Between the longitudinal shoes and the tie bars a plurality of magnetic coils 88 are disposed and these are insulated from the steel shoes and the tie bars by the non-metallic washers 84 which may be, for instance of Bakelite or any other suitable material. These magnetic coils are hollow, that is, they have a central opening therethrough for the reception of the cores each of which consists of a central portion 85 and end portions 88 of smaller diameter, both the central portions and the end portions being of circular cross section. The respective end portions 88 of the cores 85 are received in and secured to the steel shoes 88 and the tie bars 82. The connection with the steel shoes may be made by riveting or by other suitable means indicated by the configuration thereof and the connection with the tie bars made by suitable nuts 87.

It will be still further noted that whereas there are seven rows of cores there are only three rows of coils. This is a matter which is the subject of some variation depending upon the strength of magnetic field required for the magnetic attraction of the sheets by the magnetic conveyer as a whole, and whether A. C. or D. C. current is employed, and we may not only provide three rows of coils as shown, but any number thereof 7 up to the maximum number (7) or parallel shoes. We have found, however, that for the present purpose three rows or coils are ample to proeffect in that it does not prevent the desired attraction of the sheets. While we have not shown the power connections in detail, these have been diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 8 and will be readily understood by those familiar with magnetic fields and the construction and use of magnetic coils. The connections will of course vary depending upon whether the sourceof current is A. C. or D. 0., although D. C. is preferred as the source of energy because it simplifies the installation.

In Fig. 8, conductors L1 and L: are connected to a suitable source of D. 0. current supply. A contact making microammeter 98 is connected across the conductors L1 and L2, this microammeter being the same as disclosed in said Kaufman application, the construction, circuits and details of which are hereby made a part hereof. A suitable coil 99 is provided, as shown in the micro-ammeter connections for a purpose to be explained.

As will be understood micro-ammeter' 90 is provided with the contacts I and NI, the former being for control of over-gauge material and the latter being for control of under-gauge material. The actuation and control is effected by means of a pivoted pointer I02. When overgauge material, beyond the upper tolerance limit, is passing through gauge I'I, pointer I02 moves to the right and makes connection with contact I00. Similarly, when material is passing through gauge II which is below the lower tolerance limit, pointer I02 moves to the left and makes connection with contact I0 I The actuation oi pointer I02 is efiected through the coil I03 which forms a part of the gauge circuit.

Also connected across conductors L1 and L2, are

' the magnetic coils 93 which are electrically divided into two groups as shown. Group A corresponds to the lower group of coils 93, as shown in Fig. 4, and group B corresponds to the upper group of coils 93, as shown in that figure. The connections for the group A coils 93 are provided with a normally closed contactor indicated by the numeral I04, coil 99 being associated therewith for control purposes. Thus when oil-gauge material beyond tolerance limits is passing through gauge I1 and hence when pointer I02 makes connection with either contact I00 or contact IOI, coil SSbecomes energized and causes normally terierence with the normal functioning of the B group of coils. At the same time, however, the magneticiield or flux in the lower portion of the magnetic conveyer 2| is reduced to a value insufilcient to attract sheets to the conveyer I9 and hence such sheets remain unattracted thereof and pass to conveyer 28 and thence to the oilgauge piler.

It will, therefore, be understood that when onauge material, as hereinabove defined, is passing through gauge II and/or'when the operator or inspector wishes to divert certain portions of strip in the form of sheets to the off-gauge pile, the electrical connections and Iunctions are such that when this strip material in the form oisheets reaches the lower end of magnetic conveyer 2|, the A group of coils is deenergized thus causing such sheets to be conveyed to the oil-gauge piler.

The other or "O. K sheets which are formed from strip material of satisfactory gauge and surface characteristics cause no actuation of microammeter 98 and hence no de-energization of the A group of coils, and hence such sheets in their to such application for such details.

closed contactor M4 to open, thus breaking the circuit of the group A set of coils 93. As a result, the lower portion of magnetic conveyer 2I is de-energized but the coils constituting group B remain always energized when the apparatus is in use or operation. While the construction of magnetic conveyer 2i is such thatthe magnetic field or flux in the conveyer is always of sumcient value as to the upper portion of the conveyer to magnetically hold sheets which have previously been attracted from conveyer I9 by the lower portion of the magnetic conveyer when the A group or coils is energized, nevertheless We may make such variations, omissions, substitutions and additions as will be suitable and proper for various installations, and all such changes are to .be considered a part of the present invention so long asthey come within the scope and principles herein set forth. Rather our invention is to be measured by the subjoined claims. One such variation is that, if desired or preferred, oil-gauge sheets may .be magnetically attracted instead or U. K. sheets. Also, the invention is not limited to the sorting or classification of tin-plate sheets but may be used for sheets of any ferrous metal or alloy or other material capable of being magnetically attracted which is produced in rolls or coils such as silicon steels and so forth. While de-energization of the lower portion of magnetic conveyer 2i is prer'erred in the operation or the invention; another way of operating is to stop the feed of the sheets to the conveyer II (when oil-gauge sheets reach that point) until all the preceding 0. K. sheets have been discharged from the magnetic conveyer. 'l'nis also prevents mixing of the sheets and prevents already attracted sheets from dropping on too soon.

While our apparatus and procedure have been described in connection with the sorting or classlrying 01' sheets in accordance with their characteristics as determined while still in the form held by a conveyer and dropped therefrom at suitable points in accordance with their characwhen the A group is deenergized there is no in- 7 teristics in a predetermined time-delay-controlled manner. Other uses will suggest themselves to those skilled in this art. I

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A magnetic conveyer comprising a series of parallel longitudinally extending outwardly bowed metal shoes, a series or metal tie bars spaced from said shoes and extending transversely thereof, shouldered core members extending through aligned holes in said shoes and tie bars, magnet coils surrounding said cores and insulated from said shoes and tie bars, end members secured to the opposite ends of alternate shoes, roller supports carried by said end members, conveyer rollers carried -by said roller supports and an endless rubber-like belt carried by said rollers and having one run thereof moving in contact with the outer faces of said outwardly bowed shoes.

2. A magnetic conveyer comprising a series of parallel longitudinally extending outwardly bowed metal shoes, a series of metal tie bars spaced from said shoes and extending transversely thereof, shouldered spacers extendingthrough aligned holes in said shoes and tie bars, shouldered core members alternating with said spacers and extendingthrough aligned holes in said shoes and tie bars, magnet coils surrounding said cores and insulated from said shoes and tie bars. end mem-- bers secured to the opposite ends of alternate shoes, roller supports carried by said end members, conveyer rollers carried by said roller supports and an endless rubberdike belt carried by said rollers, and having one run thereof moving in contact with the outer faces of said outwardly bowed shoes.

. HOWARD B. CUMMINGS.

GEORGE R. CARROLL. 

